Sirius Versus Hagrid: The Consequences
by Norrrrrrrrrr
Summary: Sirius won't take no for an answer when Hagrid tries to take Harry to the Dursleys, instead stealing him away and raising Harry himself. Harry is a changed child because of this and not in the ways you would expect. Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and all I gain from this is writing practice. This story was originally a one-shot and is unlikely to continue.
1. Chapter 1

Smoke filled the air around the ruins of the Potter cottage in Godric's Hollow, not that any of the muggles noticed it under the many enchantments hiding it from sight. Unbeknownst to anyone there had been a great battle earlier that night that had determined the fate of an entire world, along with that of a small boy. It was lucky that some of the enchantments were still holding, otherwise they might have heard another battle raging. This battle was different however. It was not a confrontation of enemies but friends and instead of determining a world's fate it focused on the future of the now crying child.

Sirius looked up in despair at the half-giant holding Harry bundled up in his arms. Hagrid wouldn't budge when he'd set his mind to something. He was like a mountain: immovable and almost impossible to wear down.

"Hagrid, I'm his godfather," he repeated for what felt like the tenth time. "Lily and James wanted me as his guardian. Please don't do this."

"Professor Dumbledore said he'd be safest with the Dursleys," replied the big man stubbornly. "He'll have good reasons. He always does."

"Petunia hated Lily, Hagrid!" shouted Sirius, tears of frustration pouring down his face. "She won't change her spots for anything. Don't you remember Lily's wedding? She called her a freak on what was meant to be the happiest day of her life!"

Hagrid looked uncomfortable, but was obviously unwilling to back down. "The professor must have a good reason for wanting Harry with the Dursleys! We may not understand it, but you'll have to accept it!"

The words made him wonder for a moment, but he shook his head and glared at his old friend. "No! I bloody well will not!" yelled Sirius. "I am not losing my only link to James and Lily to a bunch of ignorant muggles!"

"And what's wrong with muggles?" asked Hagrid dangerously, grip tightening around his large pink umbrella.

"Nothing usually, but these bastards are like the Malfoys minus the magic. Can you imagine how much they'll resent him? He'll be a bloody pariah Hagrid!"

"Nonsense! Dumbledore wouldn't let them!" Hagrid looked seriously affronted. "He knows what's best for Harry. Quit trying to stop me Sirius. You know you wouldn't be able to anyway."

Sirius stared at the big man standing in front of him, seething. Hagrid was right. There was no way he could win a fight with the half-giant. Sirius remembered the one time he'd seen a Death Eater had tried to take on the colossal figure. Hexes and curses had flown at him as he protected a muggle family with his bulk, but none had affected him. He remembered how Hargid had blocked the few dangerous curses with his umbrella, before he sprinted at the woman and grabbed her by the throat. Sirius could still remember the sickening crunch when Hagrid had slammed her hard into the ground with enough force to break her back. That couldn't have been a pleasant death.

Sirius stood shaking, the anger and grief inside him building with nothing to inflict them on. He couldn't take Harry yet if Dumbledore had plans for him, not with Hagrid standing in his way. He was sure the man meant well, but couldn't he see what he was doing. Maybe he should go get Peter, the slimy bastard and come back for Harry later. He was certain he had enough power to push that through. No, wait. Peter didn't matter right now. Harry did. He could get him away from Hagrid. It would just take intelligence.

"How are getting to the Dursleys?" he asked, hoping he looked heartbroken enough for Hagrid not to realise he was planning something.

"I've got an oversized broomstick on me somewhere," said Hagrid, frowning. "Probably need to lash a basket to it somehow so Harry doesn't fall off. Got some twine on me somewhere." At this point the big man gently the bundle in his arms on the side of the couch not reduced to rubble and splinters and began to go through his many pockets.

Wordlessly Sirius seized the opportunity. Casting a summoning charm at the blanket and praying it wouldn't leave the baby behind, he ran for the door, catching the bundle mid-flight.

"Sirius!" yelled an angry Hagrid, going for his umbrella. "What the hell do you think your doing?"

"Taking care of my godson!" called Sirius, blasting a hole in the wall and sprinting for his motorbike. He could hear the thundering sound of Hagrid's long legs behind him, quickly reducing the distance between them. Blasting a hole in the stone wall surrounding the property, Sirius quickly turned and cast a complicated spell at the bush to one side of the hole. Apparently all that time studying the magical properties of the Whomping Willow had not been for naught, for the bush tore its way out the earth and rushed Hagrid, tangling around his arms and legs.

Hearing Hagrid's cursing, he knew he needed to hurry before the man tore himself free. Gently placing Harry into the side-car of his bike, Sirius cast warming and securing charms onto the blanket and Harry for good measure. Mounting the bike, he gunned the engine. He felt the magic kin in and suddenly he was airborne, the wind whipping at his hair as he flew towards London. He could not hear Hagrid's angry and bewildered cries for him to come back.

HPHPHP

Sirius had battened down the hatches at 12 Grimmauld Place, only letting Remus and Alastor Moody in to see Harry and ensure he was alright. Alastor had been surprisingly understanding of the entire affair, considering the fact he had gone against Dumbledore. Then again, Alastor and Albus's relationship had always been based on mutual respect, not worship.

There had been the one tricky point before all of that could happen. Sirius had found himself pinned to the wall and dosed full of Veritaserum the moment he had let the through the door. They'd both shocked when they learned that Peter had been the secret keeper and Moody had rushed off to the office to ensure Crouch put out an arrest warrant on the rat. That had all ended in tears unfortunately; Peter's surprising skill with dark curses and cornered position had left four aurors dead in the street with a further three in St Mungos for intensive care. Sirius was shocked. He'd suspected Peter of cowardice but never direct violence.

In the chaos of the hunt for Peter no-one had bothered to protect the Dursleys. They were left forgotten until the ministry detected magic at their residence and rushed their to find Petunia and Vernon Dursley lying twitching on the floor, their minds gone to the cruciatus curse and little Dudley Dursley lying dead in his cot, a look of absolute fear frozen on his face. The dark mark had been flying proudly above the muggle neighbourhood, forcing the obliviators to chase down and stun most of the muggles before the word spread. When Moody had told him this Sirius felt sick. What if Harry had been there. He would have been killed as well as that young boy. He was so caught up in his own horror he almost missed the fact that Alastor was crying.

They eventually caught the Death Eater involved in the attack; his own cousin, her husband, brother-in-law and Bart Crouch Junior made a right spectacle of themselves in front of the Wizengamot before being dragged away. One morning he'd opened the door to find Rita Skeeter standing outside looking for a juicy interview. He'd threatened to sue her into bankruptcy and bribe enough people to make it stick if she tried anything and enjoyed the horrified look on her face as he'd slammed the door shut.

After several weeks he finally had a look at all the mail he'd been receiving. He'd angrily burnt ever message he'd received from Dumbledore before he could calm down and actually open any of them. Slowly he'd replied to all the people he knew and filed forms in response to the Ministry and Wizengamot's requests. They weren't taking Harry from him, that was for certain and he knew exactly how to prevent it. For the first time in his life he was glad to be a Black.

Eventually Sirius had invited over the Longbottoms and the Tonkses, since their letters had been becoming more and more concerned. Alice had been so glad to see her godson safe and sound she'd cried and suddenly Sirius had felt terrible. He'd been so worried about Harry's safety he'd forgot there were other people who cared too. Remus had eventually come over a few days later and asked him the question he'd hoped he wouldn't. The look of betrayal on the werewolf's face when Sirius had confirmed they had suspected him of being the traitor was incredibly painful. He just hoped that time would heal the breach. Moony was still coming to see Harry, so at least he hadn't left his life completely.

HPHPHP

A younger Sirius would have been amazed at how paranoid Sirius became over the years. Harry rarely went out in public and when he did it was in part of a trusted group, like the Tonkes or the Longbottoms. Sirius had relied on his income to allow him to home-school Harry until Ted and Andy had put their foot down after seeing how morose Harry was and berated him for trapping the boy. Sirius had reluctantly agreed to send Harry to a very good muggle school, only warming to the idea when he saw how happy he was.

Harry knew he stood out as a little odd. He was a wizard in a classroom-full of muggles. His parents, who he did in fact know a lot about, were dead war heroes and the man who'd betrayed him was still there. Added to that was the sense of paranoia his godfather had instilled in him. He stood apart from the rest of the students, though he was liked well enough and only ever made a few friends. Even so Harry was a happy boy. He joined the track and field team and found that he was very good at soccer, though he much preferred quidditch.

His friends were always slightly outcast. There was Hermione Granger, loud and bossy but very clever and Sabrine Ali was about a quiet as you could be without being mute. The teachers always commented to Sirius at Parent-Teacher Interviews that it was odd considering Harry's general popularity but Sirius eventually could see why his godson had become their friend. He felt a little like he was on the outside looking in and could see something of himself in them. The main difference was that he chose to be on the outside.

More years had gone by and the world had changed and eventually Harry got his Hogwarts letter. Sirius was a little surprised when he'd found out Hermione had received one too. Apparently her parents had been very careful to hide her magic in the fear that it would make her even more of an outcast. She'd ended up going along to Diagon Alley with Harry, Sirius and the Longbottoms. Her parents clearly found the entire experience very strange and were extremely alarmed when he'd snapped at Ollivander for scaring the children.

Eventually the day was over and they'd gone about their way. Sirius found himself seeing Harry off on his first trip to Hogwarts, wondering where the time had gone. He'd hugged his godson goodbye and watched as he boarded the train with Neville and Hermione. He had to wonder what kind of boy the Wizarding World was expecting. It probably though they were getting a young James, boisterous and a troublemaker. Sirius thought that was probably exactly what Snivellus was expecting. He just hoped that the reserved, slightly paranoid boy they would actually be seeing wouldn't feel pressured to be something he wasn't. Then again, Harry had his own strength. He'd do fine.


	2. Chapter 2

**AN: I'm going off the canon descriptions, just so everyone knows.**

The hat slid down over his eyes and the world went dark. "My word Mr Potter, what a strange mind you have. I don't know quite what to make of it."

Harry sat silently, feeling a little strange as the 'sorting hat' poked around in his head. Father always refused to tell him anything about it, so he'd had to go to Remus with his questions. The only reason he hadn't torn it from his head by now was that it was enchanted to never disclose a person's secrets.

"I see you've already began developing a healthy level of paranoia Mr Potter. No response eh? I have a feeling that's your father's fault? That's what you call him to yourself, isn't it, even if he won't let you use it to his face?"

Harry sat there patiently. He supposed opening up to the hat would make the process go faster, but he frankly didn't want to answer it's questions. He must have been correct because the hat actually felt disgruntled at his lack of reply.

"You aren't making this easy, are you?" The hat seemed to sigh for a moment. "God I hate dealing with the paranoid. They're already busy building barriers and yours are frustratingly sturdy. Very well. I'll have to use your friends. It doesn't fall under my confidentiality enchantments if you're both part of the memory."

Harry felt a wave of panic wash over him and the hat laughed.

"Finally a way into you're head, eh Potter? You know I could sense someone's handiwork all over Miss Granger and Mr Longbottom's minds? Had me quite puzzled until I realised they were thinking about the same person. They see you completely differently, you know? Of course you do. You worked hard at it."

Harry felt a wave of anger wash over him. How dare the hat suggest he would manipulate his friends. He only wanted-

"What's best for them?" finished the hat, laughing. "Yes, I can see that. You love them dearly, that much is certain. Ah... so that's what you are."

Harry frowned, confused.

"Believe me, that's the way I'm feeling myself right now," said the hat. "You know the only reason your friends ended up in Hufflepuff was because of you? I hadn't been able to see it until I saw the way your mind worked, but it's obvious now."

"What are you talking about?" said Harry, his curiosity finally peaked enough to open his mouth, metaphorically of course.

"You've managed to imprint on them your obsession with loyalty Potter," said the hat smugly, apparently pleased to finally have an inroads on Harry's mind. "See Mr Potter, you're a lot like a Hufflepuff, but a strange one. You manipulate your friends to turn them into what you think would be the best version of them and you don't want many of them. You even prefer to be an outsider. So, the question is, should I put you in Hufflepuff when you're so atypical of that house and I've still only seen a fraction of who you are?"

Harry thought for a moment. "Yes. I want to be with my friends."

"Hah! You are a Hufflepuff, aren't you? Better tell the audience then... HUFFLEPUFF!"

Harry took the hat off his head and handed it back to a stunned looking McGonagal. He frowned. "Is there a problem, Professor?" He didn't like it when people paid him too much attention and he could tell the woman was only one of many in the hall.

"Not at all Mr Potter," she said, shaking herself. "Go on to your table."

He felt the eyes of everyone in the hall on him as he made his way over to the Hufflepuff table and sat down between Neville and Hermione. Suddenly, his new house seemed to realise what had just happened and burst in applause, with the rest of the hall eventually following suit. Harry glanced around, smiling at the people who shook his hand and quietly memorising their names. He looked over at the other tables. The Gryffindors and Ravenclaws both looked as stunned as the Hufflepuffs had, though a good deal less pleased about it. The Slytherins seemed to think the entire thing was a massive joke, especially Draco. That was... good. It meant that people would expect less of him.

Harry glanced up at the staff table. The plump woman who must have been Professor Sprout was beaming proudly, but the rest of the table looked flabbergasted and disappointed in turn. His parents had been favourites of Professor McGonagal and so he was unsurprised to see she was particularly disappointed. Dumbledore seemed less bothered, although Harry supposed being a politician he must have been able to cover it up incredibly well.

Severus Snape however looked utterly disbelieving, like his entire world had been turned upside down. Harry supposed, given what his father had told him, he'd been expected some hooligan bully. He'd never really had the heart to tell Father what he really thought of all the pranks the marauders had pulled off. Thinking about it, Snape was probably going to have it in for Harry. From the descriptions he'd heard of the man he sounded like one to hold a grudge.

While the food that appeared was excellent, the school notices were... slightly concerning. A third floor corridor was forbidden on threat of 'painful death'. That hardly seemed sane. He wondered whether he could find a way to include that in his letter to Sabrine, but doubted it. That girl was far too observant. He was probably risking the Statute of Secrecy just by writing to her at all, but she was Harry's friend and he would never willingly lose her.

Eventually they were sent off to bed and followed their prefects down towards the kitchens. One of the prefects explained that it was hidden behind one of the barrels and that you had tap on it in the rhythm of 'Helga Hufflepuff'. Unfortunately each person had to do it individually for security purposes, so it took a long time to get everyone through and one boy, Zacharias Smith, who mucked up the rhythm and found himself doused in vinegar. When the boy finally crawled through the tunnel five minutes later, still stinking to high heaven, the prefects had already organised the students into a loose circle in the round room.

Harry glanced around. They were underground in what appeared to be a converted basement, but there were round windows high in the walls, which let in starlight. It looked like the windows were just at ground level, because he could see the waving of grass. There were plants everywhere, many shifting and dancing and large, squishy armchairs in yellow and black. From the walls, a few smiling portraits looked down on them, quietly gossiping with their neighbours. He liked this place; it felt incredibly safe and secure. There was a crack in the wall and a larger door opened. Professor Sprout strode through, smiling.

"Welcome to the Hufflepuff basement!" Her nose twitched and she chuckled. "Don't worry Mr Smith, someone will take you to be cleaned up later. For the moment, may I just say how wonderful it is to have new members. You'll find everyone here very welcoming and I'm sure if you need help, you'll only have to ask. Now, just so everyone knows, the entrance has a security system if you mess up the rhythm." She smiled gently at Zacharias to show that nothing was meant by her words, but he still scowled. "The Hufflepuff Rooms have never been breached in over a thousand years." Harry's ears perched up at this. He liked the sound of that. "We would like to keep it that way. I'll trust all of you to keep it a secret. Now, prefects, why don't who take our new badgers off to bed?"

The group was split up and led to one of the rooms in the cellars where warm looking four poster beds sat waiting for them. Waiting until the others had turned their back, Harry quickly cast a few spells he had learnt on his bed. He'd had his mother's wand since he was nine and been learning protective magic ever since his father had thought it funny to turn his hair blue while he was sleeping. Hoping behind the curtains and getting changed, Harry snuggled down into the bed. Although he'd expected to take some time to fall asleep, the warm and strange sense of safety ensnared him and suddenly, he had drowsed off.

HPHPHP

"They're the same plant Professor. You use it in the wolfsbane potion." Snape looked like he wan't certain whether he wanted to be impressed or furious and Harry was glad Hermione had gotten his signal and kept her hand down. He looked ready to take his anger out on someone, anyone, and Harry didn't want it to be one of his friends.

As he'd suspected Snape had gone for Harry from the get go. He was just grateful he'd always taken an interest in his mother's second favourite subject, or he'd have been in real trouble. Those were not first year questions.

"Well, why aren't you all writing that down?" Professor Snape swept up to the front of the room, his robes billowing. Harry quickly noted it down with a ball-tip pen in his muggle notebook for safe measure and then watched as the instructions for today appeared on the board. He knew this recipe and remembered some of the changes that could be made to make it cook slightly faster. However, since he was working with Neville, he had to take it slower and explain the changes he was planning.

While Neville was carefully stirring while Harry chopped up the last ingredient, he felt a dark shape above him. "Potter," came the silky voice. "What are you doing?"

"Professor?"

"You've changed the recipe. Why?"

Harry could hear the menace in the man's voice and gulped nervously. "Well if you adjust-"

"I will not stop you, Potter, but if your experimentation endangers your classmates, I'll see you expelled." Snape sneered down at him, his hooked nose making Harry think of a vulture. "Do you understand?"

Okay, now he was seeing why Father didn't like the man. "Yes sir," he said, schooling his face. Snape swept off and Harry felt the eyes of both the Hufflepuffs and the Ravenclaws on him. He hoped that their own fear of the man would keep their attention off him for the most part. He liked being left alone.

After class was over and he delivered his and Neville's sample, Hermione rushed over to him. "What did you?" she asked, her eyes wide.

"I modified the recipe a little. I've brewed some of the first year potions before and most of them are simplified for school students."

Hermione's eyes went wide and Harry was glad she wasn't about to berate him. "Oh! Which potions have you brewed? Are you sure its safe?"

"He mostly knows potions to reverse afflicted conditions," piped up Neville, walking beside them.

"Yeah," said Harry, grinning. "Living with Sirius, it practically becomes a necessity."

She frowned. "Why? He always seemed so careful."

"Oh he is," assured Harry, grimacing. "He just also happens to have a love of pranking. Says he likes to keep me on my toes. I think he just finds it funny."

"Oh," said Hermione, surprised. "Why didn't he ever do anything like that to me or Sabrine?"

"Sirius wouldn't dare doing it to one of my friends. He knows I don't respond well to it."

Neville sniggered quietly, leaving Hermione looking alarmed. "Harry doesn't prank. He booby traps. You should see what he's rigged up for his trunk."

"What!?"

Hermione looked horrified and Harry laughed. "It only affects would-be thieves," he said, smirking. "I actually applied it before I thought about the fact Sirius wouldn't be able to get at it. Kind of a waste of time, really."

This didn't seem to reassure Hermione however. "But what did you do?" she asked, a pleading tone in her voice. Harry simply grinned. It was always funny watching Hermione stew over a mystery. He started running before she could begin to berate him, laughing. "I hate it when he does that," said Hermione under her breath.

Neville smiled. "It is a little annoying, isn't it?"


	3. Chapter 3

Harry quickly decided that the Ravenclaws were an odd bunch. They didn't seem to work well together at all. That wasn't to say they were a bad bunch, but their culture seemed to encourage competition. It could get a little bit nasty at times, to be perfectly honest. He supposed that it was because they didn't suffer fools lightly, but it could be a bit wearing. Part of the problem with segregating people according to personality he supposed.

Harry had shared Transfiguration with them before Potions on Monday and quickly began to find them irritating. He'd never minded Hermione's lecturing. She really just wanted to help. Well... and maybe prove she was right at the same time, but that was more of an added bonus. Some of the Ravenclaws seemed to think that the Hufflepuffs were a bunch of idiots and were very condescending. Others were nicer though, so he decided to reserve judgement. People were generally worse in large groups, when they felt they had to fit in, anyway.

They really only ran into the Slytherins in the halls and aside from the occasional insult they seemed content to leave them alone. He only started hearing the horror stories when he had Herbology with the Gryffindors on Wednesday. The interhouse rivalry seemed very strong, much worse than the slight tension between them and the Ravenclaws.

The name Draco Malfoy was throw around a lot, which did not surprise Harry one bit. Every time he'd run into Draco the boy had proven himself to be the worst sort of pureblood. Ron Weasley, a loud boy who came from a large family had made the mistake of catching Draco's attention on the train. It had ended with Draco setting his goons on Ron; the boy still sported large bruises and his movements were stiff. Percy, Ron's brother and a Gryffindor prefect had taken the matters to the professors, but Snape had argued against punishing his godson and the other professors had been unable to do anything without the Head of Slytherin's approval.

Father did seem to be right about Professor Snape, at least partly. Harry knew how biased the man was sometimes and he'd remembered how Lupin had always been a little quiet when he was telling one of the Marauders' stories that related to 'Snivellus'. Whatever the case was, Harry felt that Professor Snape must be in some part a contributing factor to Slytherin's culture. It definitely didn't help that the children of so many Death Eaters had also been sorted into the house of recent times, but that couldn't be all of it. From what he could see and had heard of Snape rarely took points from Slytherin and took a disproportionate number of points from Gryffindor. Harry had a horrible feeling he might be able to lay part of that at both of his fathers' feet.

Speaking of his father,why hadn't he sent him a letter yet? Harry had a horrible feeling the school owl had fallen foul of one of the nastier wards Father had set up. He supposed only time would tell.

HPHPHP

Harry had his answer when a large snowy owl landed in front of him on Saturday. Neville eyed the bird dubiously. "I don't recognise her Harry. Who's is she?"

Harry took the envelope and accompanying package from her offered leg and opened it, his eyes widening in surprise. "She's mine." The bird hopped over to him and rubbed her head against his hand. "Sirius sent her as a 'Congratulations On Surviving To Make It To Hogwarts' present. Do you have a name?" he asked the bird, stroking her head gently. She hooted negatively. "I suppose I'll have to find a name for you then."

"What did Sirius say?" asked Hermione. "He wasn't disappointed, was he? I've heard some of the other students talking about how their parents reacted to them being sorted here."

Harry smiled. "No. He was surprised though. Apparently he thought I'd be going into Gryffindor like my parents." His eyes continued down the page and he groaned.

"What?" asked Hermione, alarmed.

"He's been holding the school owl captive so I wouldn't get the idea he was ignoring me," said Harry in exasperation. "Does that make any kind of sense?"

Hermione's brow furrowed and Neville shook his head. "Not really, no. What's the package?"

"Package?" Harry asked confused. "Oh!"Harry had quite forgotten the package while he'd been focused on the owl and now scooped it up, pulling the paper and twine off, revealing an old, scratched hand mirror. His eyes widened in recognition and he quickly pocketed it. Harry didn't fancy Snape seeing it in case he recognised it from his school days.

"What is it?" Hermione asked curiously.

"Kind of a magical mobile telephone or walky talky," replied Harry. "I'm just not certain it's entirely allowed at school, that's all. Sirius must have the other one."

"Why wouldn't it be?" She looked a touch peplexed.

"I've told you about my father and Sirius's reputations, haven't I?" replied Harry, grimacing. "They probably used this to get up to something nefarious at some point."

"They sound a little like those Gryffindor boys, don't they? The Weasley twins?"

Harry shrugged uncomfortably. "I've never admitted it to anyone before, but I sometimes get the feeling they were a little more malicious than that."

She seemed to mirror his expression. "Ah... Well, when are you going to talk to him?"

"Probably after lunch," said Harry. "Want to catch him awake, don't I?"

"But hasn't he always kept very reasonable hours?" She looked a little alarmed at the idea Sirius would be anything other than awake at this hour.

"He has a tendency to get up to... things when I'm not there," replied Harry. "Just about the only time he winds down his paranoia and gets out of the house."

"What sort of things?" Hermione asked scandalously. She'd never heard about this side of Sirius before and Harry felt very embarrassed to have brought it up.

"Er," he mumbled weakly. "Well I-"

"It's not really appropriate to ask," said Neville, coming to his rescue. "So Harry, what are we doing this morning? And no, Hermione, we will not be studying. It's only first week and we deserve some time to explore."

Harry grinned at the indignant look on her face and leant forward, dropping his voice to a whisper. "Well..."

HPHPHP

Harry sat under a secluded tree by the lake, looking down at Sirius's incredulous face. "So you didn't scam your way into Hufflepuff? I figured you must have bribed the hat to be with your friends or something."

Harry laughed. "What could I bribe it with? It's a piece of cloth" he countered, shaking his head at the idea.

"Um... a wash? It certainly needs one if memory serves." Harry raised an eyebrow. "Um, no, I guess not. Repairs? Oh hell Harry, I don't know. Stop looking at me like that." Sirius's small image frowned up at Harry as he smirked. "So anyway, how did both your friends end up in Hufflepuff too? Neville I understand, sort of, but Hermione? I thought she was prime Ravenclaw material."

Harry went silent while he considered his answer. "He said it was me."

"Eh?" Sirius's brow furrowed.

"He said my handiwork was all over their minds," Harry explained, somewhat miserably."He said I manipulate my friends to make them what I think they should be. Does that make me a bad person?"

Sirius looked a little stunned for a moment. "Harry, don't you dare think you're a bad person. You know you aren't. Now, before you start arguing, do you think Neville or Hermione would let you do anything to them they disagreed with? Do you think they would let you shape them into bad people? You're just very persuasive, that's all."

"But-"

"Have you ever done anything to hurt you friends Harry?"

"Well no but-"

Sirius looked triumphant. "Well there you are then. Now, I don't want to hear another word about it,okay, and you mustn't think on it. It's a piece of cloth, just like you said."

"Okay," said Harry slightly reluctantly. He wasn't entirely convinced, but he supposed Sirius had a point.

"Now tell me, how has Snivellus been treating you?" asked Sirius eagerly. "And how are you going to get him back for it?"

Harry groaned. He didn't like the sound of where this conversation was heading.

HPHPHP

Harry had ran into Draco on his goons on the way back to the castle, a very unpleasant experience, though of course they hadn't said anything. Ever since Sirius and the Longbottoms had applied their political and monetary muscle to tear down his father's Imperius plea things had been tense between them. Not that Draco would ever try something directly. Though his mother had managed to hold onto the family wealth, the Malfoys were still disgraced in the eyes of the public and it wouldn't do to damage their reputation further. It did make every meeting awkward however.

Harry thought that the two boys accompanying Draco were probably Vincent Crabbe and Gregory Goyle. They'd probably be more trouble since their fathers had also gone to jail without Lucius Malfoy's protection and they didn't have the political intelligence that Draco seemed to have gained from his mother.

He eventually made his way to the library, after nearly getting lost a few times. He really wished he had the Marauders' map he'd heard so much about from Father and Remus. It would make his life so much easier. Only problem was that it was probably still in Filch's office and having a go at getting it back would probably end with him in detention.

Sirius and Remus had once tried to reproduce it, but without James' expertise it had been a futile effort, especially considering that he was the one who'd had the majority of their notes. So, if Harry wanted it, he'd either have to find out how James did his part of it, or steal it off Filch, neither of which sounded like particularly attractive options.

Slipping through the rows, he eventually found Hermione in the corner, hidden behind a stack of tomes. "Hermione, its about time for dinner."

The girl looked up, momentarily disorientated. "Oh. Right, sorry."

"What are you looking at?" asked Harry curiously. He glanced at the one book covers and frowned. Muggle Greek Mythology? Ancient Greek Monsters?

"Neville and I had an... unusual experience while you were out of the castle," said Hermione, scowling. "Those Weasley twins unleashed some sort of Duplicating Snapping Geese things. Neville and I got chased by a pack of them and didn't realise where we were going. We ended up on the third floor corridor."

Harry's eyes widened. "Don't tell me you went in."

Hermione nodded tersely. "Yes. Unlocked the door and barrelled through before we realised what was on the other side. They're keeping a giant three headed dog there, did you know that?" Her voice shook with rage. "We barely got out in time and only survived because the geese decided to rush it for some reason."

"What on earth are they doing with a beast like that?" asked Harry, shocked.

"It's guarding something, that's for sure," said Hermione. "That's what they're for according to the books I've been reading. I'm just angry that they'd keep it behind a door tha was unlocked so easily."

"Where's Neville," asked Harry, suddenly concerned.

"He said something about talking to the house elves," Hermione replied, scooping p the books she wanted to borrow, which was most of them and putting the others back on their shelves. "What are house elves by the way? He was gone before I could ask."

"There a kind of servant species I guess. They magically bond themselves to a family. We've got one at home named Kreacher. He's a little old and he and Sirius don't get along, but he's always liked me."

"So they work for you and you pay them?" asked Hermione curiously.

"Er, no," said Harry awkwardly. "I tried to pay Kreacher once when I was little and he got really upset. I mean really upset. In fact, the only time I saw him more upset was when I offered him a holiday. He thought I didn't want him."

"So he wouldn't take it? He's happy being a slave?" She looked horrified at the thought.

"I guess. They're very powerful, but aren't really big supporters of independence. Kreacher once told me that there was no greater dishonour for a house elf than being free."

Hermione looked extremely disturbed. "I'll get these books out and meet you in the Great Hall, okay?"

"Okay." Harry walked off, looking at her over his shoulder. He hadn't supposed it would be such a disturbing concept for Hermione. Hopefully she'd focus on the giant killing machine on the third floor and not on the house elves. He couldn't see anything good coming out of that.


End file.
